Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 12 May 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport

Covid-19 Testing and Air Travel: Nuevo Ireland

Dr. Damien Kenny:

No, we do not believe so. With regard to the thermocycler, the process is the same process, and it has just been narrowed down to some extent. In fact, we have a 45-cycle run, which lasts a bit longer than may be necessary because of mandates originally from the FDA, but there is even a possibility to bring down the testing times with a reduced number of cycles. Most certified labs would look at between 30 and 35 cycles as being adequate to be able to rule out whether or not there is amplification of RNA. I do not believe the mobility or the size of the testing strategy has any implication for its accuracy.